Getting Unstuck

"Boy, did I need to hear that this week and last week - thanks so much for sending these out!"

"I have been feeling those newsletters lately about starting over. Your phrase “once is better than nonce!” runs through my head a lot. I continue to push forward, no matter how bogged down I feel."

Ahh, I understand. One of my favorite sayings, because it's true. Once IS better than nonce.

I was thinking about what dating is like at 60 years old. It's super interesting and reminds me of fitness. I'll show up for a first date, and some suitors have their questions all loaded up ready to fire. "What exactly are you looking for?", is a common one.

What's the vibe underneath that? "Don't waste my time...I'm running out. I can't take the thought of dating someone if I don't know for sure it's going to go somewhere."

Exhausting.

I watch people approach fitness in a similar way. We have to know how the story ends before we're willing to start reading it.

I don't believe that's how it works - in dating or fitness (or literature!).

We have to be willing to take a small step. One small step. That's it. What comes next is a mystery until we get there.

I don't know if I want to go on a second date until I've had the first date. For crying out loud.

And I don't know what the second workout looks like until I've had my first. How did it go? How did I feel? Do I need to adjust? Did it bring me joy?

Nothing can happen without the first one.

I read an analogy once about a car trip at night. You can only see about 150 feet ahead on the road, but you might be traveling 150 miles. The road ahead will reveal itself when the light shines upon it.

Once is better than nonce.
And it's also everything.

It is the foundation of all that comes after. Ask anyone in AA.

If you are stuck, all you need is one workout. One. Don't worry about the second one until you've completed your first. Step into the mystery. See what the road reveals to you as you go.

One day at a time. One step at a time.